In Thursday night's loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin suffered an ankle injury and had to be helped to the locker room. Though Toppin returned for a brief stint in the second quarter, he was subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the game. At this point, it is unknown how significant Toppin's ankle injury is, but we at least know he will be forced to miss time.
After the game, head coach Rick Carlisle spoke about Toppin's injury and the severity.
(Toppin will officially miss tonight's game against the reigning champion Boston Celtics.)
"Obi tried to go back out," Carlisle said. "It didn't seem like it was that bad initially and then he felt it when he went back out. I certainly assume he'll miss tomorrow. We'll see. He's been a guy that's bounced back quickly."
This news is bad for Toppin and the Pacers for multiple reasons. Unfortunately for the Pacers, who failed to go over .500 again last night, this is just another development in what has been a disappointing season.
Obi Toppin's injury hurts the Pacers in more ways than one
The most obvious reason Toppin's injury is brutal for the Pacers is that they will be without one of their best bench players if he misses significant time. Though the Pacers are starting to get healthy again, largely due to the returns of Andrew Nembhard and Ben Sheppard, they are not at full-health just yet. Aaron Nesmith is still sidelined with no concrete return timetable, and Myles Turner has popped up on the injury report multiple times this season.
Toppin was also in the midst of a great stretch for the Pacers. During the Pacers' five-game winning streak, the 26-year-old averaged 13.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 2 steals all off the bench. Additionally, he shot 62.5% from the field and 45% from the three-point line during that span. Losing him for any period of time could be a brutal loss for the Pacers' second unit.
Furthermore, Toppin's injury will also make it difficult for the Pacers to trade him this season if that is what they decide to do. Earlier this month, NBA insider Bobby Marks named Toppin as the Pacers' likeliest trade candidate this season. Though Carlisle's recent comments would suggest that the forward is too valuable for the team to trade, moving him ahead of the deadline could be a good move for the team nonetheless, especially for financial reasons.
The Pacers may be unable to trade Toppin this season, especially if he is out for significant time. For a Pacers team trying to remain consistently in the playoff picture, Toppin's injury could make it difficult for them to contend this season.